Hospitality Sri Lanka: An idea that evolved from a commitment of passion - Part 1
This week marks the 10th anniversary of Hospitality Sri Lanka and a moment to reflect on how we started and how we got to where we are now. At the beginning, one of the things we soon realised is that running a magazine is more complicated than putting stories to paper. However, what we lacked in expertise we made up for in fearlessness and took up the challenge. One aspect of our success is that Shafeek, our son Ashraaq and I have been involved in every step of our journey – as we do even now. Despite not knowing what to do…we knew where we wanted to go. So, here we go…back in time.
My Husband Shafeek retired at the age of 60 after working for 32 years in the hotel industry to pursue his passion for writing. Pretty soon, I would see him furiously putting his fingers to the keyboard to whip out articles on hospitality-related subjects that caught the attention of the business editor of the widely read ‘Daily Mirror’ newspaper – thereafter resulting in his articles been published regularly.
As more of his articles appeared, it led to several readers, including friends and total strangers messaging him that they found his articles very educative and that they eagerly looked forward to his next article. I must add that all his writing for the newspaper was done free. Writing for free is not detrimental – because it led to wider recognition of his expertise on the subject matter: with some reputed contacts swaying him to conduct fee-based workshops and training sessions – all well and good.
However, when I factored in the time and commitment it took him to pitch and research every piece, I realised producing an article nearly every week wasn’t easy. In my mind, it was time for him to move on. From being in it for the passion to transit to something more challenging, like having his articles printed in a magazine of our own for hospitality professionals and those in the industry. Being ‘Spa Asia’s media representative for Sri Lanka and the Maldives, I knew that starting a specialised niche magazine can be viable though often demanding high initial effort. It also requires a strategic mix of revenue streams like advertising and specialized content relevant to the industry.
And so, one afternoon, I shared my thoughts with Shafeek who agreed with me to take up the challenge, given that I was fully committed to the idea. I was able to convince Shafeek that even though he had recently retired, you’re never too old… If Colonel Sanders could start KFC at the age of 62 years, we were young enough to start something of our own. Regardless of age; the key to success is having a good idea and being dedicated to making it work. We were hugely encouraged by Ashraaq’s vote of confidence, when he unwaveringly volunteered to channeled his marketing and technical skills as we prepared to move forward. Today, our son Ashraaq is an integral part of our small team.
We brainstormed and created a game plan that included our mission (the reason why our magazine should exist), who our primary audience is - someone having a “continuing need” (for our content), so they’ll want to subscribe and read more, our goals, how we’ll attain them and how will the first issue be funded?
Executing our plan from the ground up; began by finding the right name for the new magazine where the first impression of our publication comes from the title. A strong name should be memorable, easy to spell, stand out from the others and directly reflect the niche and tone of the publication.
We first chose ‘Hotelier Sri Lanka’ – one that matched an available domain on a web hosting provider / domain registrar to create our website. However, when we tried to register the name, we found that it was already trademarked. So we were back to square one. In hindsight, it was for the best.
After an exhaustive search we discovered that ‘Hospitality Sri Lanka” was a fittingly all-encompassing title. Even more exciting was that the domain with the identical name was available – which we immediately purchased. Next, was to register “Hospitality Sri Lanka’ which we also did. Our naming ceremony, if one were to call it, occurred on the 16th of February 2016.
Ashraaq was tasked with managing the website. He created the website header and the banner carrying the “Hospitality Sri Lanka” logo, whilst setting up the “under construction” webpage - until we selected a design, filled it with content and was ready for a full release. Incidentally, the logo was created by our good friend Keith.
Moving on, we had to now design a dummy for our magazine, which we had to submit for obtaining the required QR and ISSN Number codes. Drawing up a checklist on what the magazine would include, we prepared the dummy combining our preferred typography and visuals as well as designing a cover. We also decided on the paper weight (cover and pages), type of binding to make the dummy appear as close as possible to been print-ready. Creating the dummy taught us that a magazine is a partnership of words and images. For instance, as word counts drop, the illustrations have to carry more of the story. Eventually preparing the dummy became an excellent tool to grasp the complexities involved in producing a magazine.
Getting advertisers by using a dummy version of the new magazine: We also carried dummy ads that blended in neatly with the magazine content, ensuring a professional appearance - because an effective strategy to attract and lock in potential advertisers, before a new magazine is released is by using a dummy version that looks as close as possible to the eventual print version. We also printed our visiting cards including Advertising rate sheets and some brochures to take with us during our sales call.
Ours was a ‘quarterly’ magazine issue that would focus on the hospitality industry. Our audience included Tourism and Hospitality Leaders, Industry Professionals, Hotel and Restaurant Managers, Department Heads, Purchasing managers and those interested in a career in hospitably – and even Travellers and Diners. Likewise, we had to identify brands (advertisers) that catered to that audience. We also had to offer different ad formats and packages, allowing them to customize their promotions based on budgets and goals.
Overall, the process of getting advertisers involved targeted market research; strategic planning and an effective outreach effort that was truly arduous. It involved countless phone calls and numerous personal sales visits and re-visits, by Shafeek and me. Our zealous efforts paid off. We successfully obtained a secure advertising revenue stream that was sufficient to cover all related expenses towards publishing the inaugural edition of ‘Hospitality Sri Lanka and for the next three ‘quarterly’ magazines for the year ahead.
We were totally dependent on the revenue from advertising - since the ‘not-for-profit’ magazine was distributed free to our targeted audience in Sri Lanka and the Maldives. However, to kick-start our venture, we had to use personal capital – raised by saving money to fund the first issue. I.e. until such time as the advertisers paid us – which were, subsequent to the release of the inaugural magazine.
Choosing the right printer: We looked out for a printer who we can trust to deliver satisfactory results every time. Someone who can do more than print – i.e. advise us on the paper quality and right weight, whether it should be on glossy paper for the best image quality, that he double-checks layout to ensure that the pages will be laid out as expected, whether a bleed is required and so on. Bottomline: The printer we select must be a critical ally on our way from printing to distribution.
Ashraaq, who is involved with local automotive magazine Motor, had just the person who ticked off all the boxes. He recommended Rasika who was the printer of Motor. We then set up a meeting at his printing press – to not only see his machinery and quality of work, but also get him to give us a brief education on the printing process. We then negotiated the price and decided to go with Rasika.
Hiring a freelance graphic artist; The young graphic artist who came recommended by our newly appointed printer, when interviewed showed promise. Although Tharindu lacked experience, he had the potential to do great work and was eager to learn. We thought we would give him a trial run. The arrangement was that since we were working from home, he’ll come to our home every weekend. Before his visits though, we would email him bits and pieces of content including completed articles (as and when prepared) for him to begin work. He then had to send his work to us before his weekend visit/s – giving us time to review and consider changes to be done on the go, when he came. As time went by, he understood what we expected and improved his graphic skills in leaps and bounds. Eventually, based on the work he did for us, he won a scholarship for further study in a European country.
Part 2 will be continued next week
Mehroon Wahab – Director Sales / Admin for Hospitality Sri Lanka. She is a former Media representative for ‘Spa Asia’ in Sri Lanka and the Maldives, is a professional jazz Pianist and composer. Her originals can be listened to online including on Spotify. She is an avid birder and wildlife photographer, and a qualified TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) instructor.
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